Part of an ongoing trader interview series — the same set of questions put to different traders, covering background, psychology, strategy, and lessons learned. Originally published on Traders Questions.
Nearly full time trader — but have a farm and a deli business to run too.
About yourself
Started trading approximately 12 years ago but scaled back due to other commitments. Re-entered the field 3-4 years ago, experienced difficulty in the first year, then achieved steady progress. Now generates income through trading activities.
What was your journey that led you into trading?
A friend working as an FX trader at a major London investment bank sparked the interest, followed by a personal fascination with macroeconomic matters. The path involved exploring courses, making errors, and filtering through unreliable information until connecting with like-minded traders who shared a similar methodology. Emphasis placed on the psychological aspects of trading, developed through practical experience.
What trading challenges are you currently facing and how do you have a plan to get through them?
An overtrading tendency persists after successful trades. Addressed through journaling, data tracking, reading, and observing skilled traders in action.
What inspires you to trade and what are your specific reasons to pursue trading?
Multiple income streams reduce financial pressure. The mental challenge drives motivation — executing disciplined plans and continuously improving performance matters most, alongside accepting the market’s indifference to individual efforts.
How many years have you been trading (hands on, not algo)?
More than 5 years.
In your head
What’s the thing you enjoy most about working as a trader and what was your most painful experience?
Most enjoyable: executing higher timeframe plans with discipline rewarded. Most painful: an early options trade with incorrect sizing and a forgotten news event, causing significant losses.
What are the key factors that separate successful day traders from those who fail?
Three critical elements: discipline, process, and accepting losses immediately upon entry. FOMO affects inexperienced traders significantly. Patience proves essential — waiting for continuation rather than early-open entries provides superior entry options. Accepting loss is the biggest difference.
How do you deal with frustration, self-doubt, and other emotional aspects of trading?
Stepping away and practicing IIDSO (If In Doubt Stay Out). Maintaining emotional equilibrium through wins and losses helps prevent overreaction. Journaling and breaks require discipline but demand no performance skill.
We all have off days — do you have a process or criteria to understand if it’s a day to not trade?
If price action becomes unreadable, taking a break is necessary. During range-bound consolidations with breakout potential, referring to higher timeframes helps identify major levels worth monitoring.
Strategy and trading plan
What does your typical trading session, including pre and post, look like?
Uses a journaling template assessing sleep quality and mental state first. Zooms out to understand the weekly position and upcoming news events. Analyzes price action from daily through individual timeframes, identifying key levels and magnets. Since November, gives equal weight to both directional possibilities rather than predicting a specific outcome.
What market or markets and timeframes do you trade and why?
M15 timeframe for decision-making; M1 for entries.
What are the key indicators or charts you look at first thing in the morning to understand the market trend?
Primarily D1 and H1 price action interpretation rather than indicators. Al Brooks’ candle price-action reading methodology proves particularly effective.
Give 1 or 2 examples of your strategy explaining your reasons for entering the trade, how you managed the trade and your exit.
A DAX trade where a confluence zone formed just above the overnight high after a fair value gap. Successfully entered at the overnight high test, managed through corrections despite reaching the initial target, then banked fixed points covering decent session returns while allowing the remainder to run.
What platform, indicators and other tools do you rely on for analysis, placing and managing a trade?
MT4 (despite acknowledged flaws), Steve’s execution tools (Advanced Trade Manager and eWavesHarmonics), Fibonacci retracements. No moving averages or other common indicators.
Do you have contact with other traders?
Prefers smaller chat rooms — larger communities devolve into noise without useful information exchange.
How do you adapt your trading strategies to different market environments?
Adjusts risk-reward targets and position sizing based on major events like FOMC and NFP announcements.
Old hands
How long did it take for you to really get trading down?
“Haven’t yet.”
If you could start over what would you do different?
Would prioritize securing an early mentor rather than pursuing countless courses, which largely lack genuine value.
Was there a notable time when you started to regularly make a profit? Was it gradual or a lightbulb moment?
A gradual process, emerging from lessons extracted through mistakes.
What are the things that are going to separate you from the large majority of traders who fail?
Loss acceptance and developing a personal trading style. While aspiring to other traders matters, owning a method aligned with individual natural tendencies becomes essential.
What’s your best advice for experienced traders who want to become independent and trade full time?
Maintain secondary income initially to reduce pressure. When focusing on process and methodology, results naturally follow.
What’s the most effective method of spotting strength in an instrument?
Higher timeframes frequently provide early signals when reacting to key areas.